Drinking cups, coffee cups, and other types of drinking vessels and containers, from which a beverage can be consumed, are frequently used in combination with a cooperating lid. Some lid designs require removal of the lid from the drinking vessel for consuming the beverage contained therein; however, most commercial drinking cup lids today are adapted for attachment to the cup rim and feature a drink-through opening which allows a user to consume the beverage contained in the drinking vessel without removing the lid therefrom. Note that herein the terms “cup” and “vessel” are used generically to refer to all types of vessels and/or containers from which a beverage may be consumed.
Commonly used coffee cup lids typically feature a drink-through opening proximate to the perimeter of the lid in the form of a small unobstructed aperture or hole within the lid that allows a person to drink coffee or other beverage without removing the lid from the cup. In addition, at least one separate vent hole is often included in a disposable lid so as to allow air to enter the cup and equalize the pressure inside the cup as the beverage is consumed.
Of course, while providing a drink-through opening in a coffee cup lid facilitates consumption of the beverage without separating the lid from the drinking vessel, it also creates a risk that beverage could be inadvertently splashed or spilled out through the opening if the cup is inadvertently tipped or jostled, or is subjected to sudden acceleration or deceleration. These situations are often encountered when the cup or other drinking vessel is being transported, whether by hand, within a cup holder in a moving vehicle, or while walking, climbing stairs, or traveling in an elevator or escalator.
Inadvertent spilling and splashing can create dangerous situations when a user is driving or moving. With today's busy lifestyle, consumption of beverages on-the-go has become commonplace, and inadvertent spilling and splashing of a beverage can be particularly irksome and embarrassing for a user when en route to work or to a professional and/or social engagement. The term “spilling” as generally used herein refers to inadvertent flowing of a beverage out of a cup or drinking vessel; and, the term “splashing” as generally used herein refers to the inadvertent ejection or scattering from a cup of beverage droplets or modest quantities of beverage that become airborne due to sudden and/or rapid movement or halting of the drinking vessel.
It will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that lids for use with cold beverages such as sodas often include holes that fit snuggly around drinking straws, whereby the length of the straw effectively prevents splashing and spilling. However, straws are typically not practical, or at least are not preferred, when consuming a hot beverage such as tea, coffee, or hot chocolate.
Lids designed for use with hot beverages sometimes include small holes or flaps near their rims that can be opened for drinking. However, turbulence or “sloshing” of a beverage when the cup has substantial quantities of beverage therein can easily lead to spilling of some liquid out from the hole, and jostling of the cup can cause liquid to splash or spill through such a hole or flap.
A drainage well is sometimes provided in a disposable lid so that small amounts of liquid that do spill or splash inadvertently from the drinking hole (or through a vent hole) will pool in a designated region of the lid and drain back into the cup. However, such drainage wells are typically shallow, and are only effective if the cup is maintained in a near-vertical orientation. In certain situations, additional jostling may even cause liquid to splash or spill out of the drainage well before it has drained back into the cup.
A drinking hole is sometimes placed at the top of a raised spout, so as to reduce the likelihood that liquid will spill or splash from the drinking hole. However, since the drinking hole is in the direct path of a beverage splash, liquid is still able to splash through the drinking hole if the cup is shaken or jostled with sufficient force, for example if the beverage is being consumed while traveling in a vehicle and the vehicle drives over a pot hole or other uneven feature in the road, or is forced to brake or maneuver suddenly.
Various types of lids with closable drinking holes and/or spouts have been proposed and/or are in use. Some provide a rotatable second piece that can seal the drinking hole, while others provide a tethered cap or plug that can be used to seal the drinking hole. However, these approaches only provide protection from spilling and splashing when the drinking hole is closed or blocked, and do not naturally inhibit spilling and splashing when open. Furthermore, when the drinking hole is closed or blocked it also prevents a user from consuming the beverage. It will be appreciated by those of ordinary skill that these lids tend to be multi-piece constructions, and may be generally more expensive to produce than a one-piece construction lid. Furthermore, once a user has unplugged the drink-through opening the lid essentially functions as an open-spout lid, as it would be too cumbersome for a user to plug and unplug the drinking hole manually each time a portion of beverage is to be consumed.
Another approach is to provide a two-piece or multi-piece lid assembly comprising a separate insert that can be placed either on a cup or underneath a lid, wherein the separate insert has fluid passages that are not aligned with the drinking and vent openings in the lid, thereby preventing straight-line travel by splashed, airborne droplets from the cup interior through a lid opening, and forcing the beverage to flow through a convoluted path before exiting through the lid. While this approach may provide good splash resistance, it presents some practical hurdles. If the insert and the lid are required to be installed by a consumer, then it may be inconvenient and cumbersome for the consumer. Also, separate inserts can become dislodged or can shift in position, and can therefore be unreliable. This is true even if the insert is loosely attached to the lid or separately attached to the rim of the cup. On the other hand, if this solution is implemented by a lid manufacturer, it raises the cost of the lid since manufacturing involves providing and installing a separate insert within a lid as part of a secondary operation. In addition, since an insert can become dislodged or shift in position, reliable assembly may also require joining the insert and the lid via fastening, gluing, and/or bonding operations, further rendering the lid-assembly even more expensive.
A one-piece splash and spill resistant lid is described in US Pat. Pub. 20100133272 to Whitaker et al. (Whitaker '272) and assigned to the assignee of the present invention. Whitaker '272 describes a variety of lid constructions wherein the spout openings have been manipulated to have constricted dimensions which can be disposed in the spout well. However, it has been found that while constricting the openings provides some degree of splash resistance, a user may still be exposed to splashing hazards from hot beverages.
What is needed, therefore, is an improved splash and spill resistant lid for use with a drinking cup that enables drinking of a beverage without requiring separation of the lid from the drinking cup, while also inherently inhibiting or at least minimizing inadvertent spilling and splashing of the beverage from the cup, without requiring deployment of manual plugs or blocking devices. These and other needs, as shall hereinafter appear, are met by the device of the present invention.